This is a set of five related novels, set mainly in the Pacific Northwest, and centered on the same cast of characters. Each novel could stand alone, but the reader will find the overall story more coherent if they are read in sequence. Unfortunately, coherence is a bit of an issue here. Plots involving drug smuggling, political corruption, fraud, polygamous sects, earth-religion/spirituality, and concealed identities should generate suspense and excitement, but these loosely connected, meandering and contrived tales end up flat and uninteresting. Most of the characters have the potential for interesting complexity, but instead the men are all basically chest-thumping over-protective alpha-male types, and the women vacillate between unreasoningly stubborn independence and simpering "stand-by-your-man" deference. Everybody conceals secrets from those they supposedly love and trust, and in the end it is hard to like or empathize with any of these people. What should have been a block-buster New York Times bestseller is a limping disappointment, and the blame for so much wasted potential lies in careless and undisciplined writing, and careless editing. UGH.